EDUCATION

TCG's education program conducts research and provides information to theatre education professionals, gives visibility to member theatres' educational activities and offers professional development opportunities to the field. Among the year's highlights:

In consortium with ASSITEJ/USA, the American organization of theatres for young people and children, TCG was awarded a $40,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support our new education initiative—Building a National TEAM: Theatre Education Assessment Models. The program is geared toward arming education directors with national models and frameworks that establish basic competencies so they can more effectively hire and develop teaching artists and evaluate their education programs. A working group of theatre educators will be assembled to create 10 to 12 national models that will be adaptable to meet the needs of both TCG and ASSITEJ/USA members, which together reach over 8.6 million student theatregoers in America each year.

Theatre Educators Teleconferences

Offered year-round, education teleconferences provide education staff at member theatres an opportunity to share information, ideas, problems and solutions with peers throughout the country. Topics have included partnerships and working alliances, building stronger student matinee and touring programs, integrated approaches to education through the arts in public schools, internal and external advocacy, assessment and artist training. During 2004-2005, 59 theatre educators participated in teleconferences moderated by Sharon Brewer, director of education at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, and Andrea Allen, director of education at Seattle Repertory Theatre.

Since 1998, TCG has surveyed member theatres about their education programs. The tabulated results of the annual Education Survey are published as an Education Centerpiece, and the individual results are available to TCG member theatres on the TCG website. In 2004-2005, 112 of TCG's member theatres reported offering educational programming to their communities. Through in-school teaching residencies, theatre workshops and classes, student matinee programs and after-school and summer camp programs, TCG's theatre educators reach 4.5 million students annually, up from 3.9 million in the previous year.